Lily
by captainodonewithyou
Summary: Henry has a crush and only Killian knows. (Pirate)


He would have had to be a fool to miss the way the gaggle of women stood pointedly away from him, chattering in low tones amongst themselves and throwing him the occasional narrow eyed glance. It was a scenario that he had not considered when promising Swan he'd meet the lad after school. Still, from the moment he'd arrived the women had slowly gathered together, slowly drifted distrustingly away from him.

He was clever enough to understand the point, and moved himself away from them, back against the brick wall of the squat building belonging to one of the many of dwarves, an apothecary of sorts. He tried to keep from looking towards the crowd of mothers— they were anxious enough as it was, what with the evidently unseasonal weather and the living snow-monster rampage incident. ("They've gotten used to normality, Killian!" Emma had told him distractedly). As a result no one wished to have their children roaming the streets alone. Hence the crowd awaiting the bus.

He tried to be understanding, tucking his hooked hand deep within the folds of his leather coat (Why the hell had he worn the bloody thing?) and held his head bowed unthreateningly. It seemed to do little to appease them, and he found himself in an internal monologue berating himself for how bloody ridiculous he was being. The things he did for that woman.

The cold was seeping into his bones and he was beginning to consider slipping into the surely heated shop he leaned against when he finally, finally, heard the sound he'd come to recognize as the trundling vehicles of this realm. He started to move forward before catching the nervous eyes of one of the women, and resolved to remain back and allow the lad to come to him.

The bus came to a slow stop and children began to file off, babbling happily and filing off towards their respective parents. Killian watched aptly, fidgeting every time another child came off that was not Henry. The line was beginning to slow and he was beginning to grow nervous when finally the boy's lanky frame appeared— flanked closely by a smaller, decidedly feminine form. Killian had been moving to intercept the boy but seeing his companion, he once again held himself back, watching.

Henry leaped from the bottom step and quickly offered his arm to the girl— a little thing with bright red hair. She smiled shyly and accepted the assistance, stepping cautiously down onto the ice with the help of Henry. He said something that made her giggle, which proceeded to turn his cheeks bright, a sheepish smile creeping across his face (a smile far too reminiscent of his mother's, all charm and sneak, dangerous to belong to such imps. If the poor lass had an ounce of sense she did not stand half a bloody chance).

He was not sure if the boy had seen him yet, but judging by his careful movements to keep the girl decidedly away from him he thought it safe to assume he had. He smirked, leaning more fully against the bricks and smugly enjoying knowing something of the lad that Swan certainly did not.

When finally Henry joined him (an awkward hug and shifty goodbye later), his cheeks were still colored and he greeted him with some mumbled words and a nod of the head.

"Your mum sent me," Killian told him unnecessarily, pushing lazily off the wall and trying to ignore the women pulling their children pointedly away from him. Henry gave a slight nod, shifting slightly. He had been far from subtle with the girl, and they were both aware, yet still remained silent as Killian motioned for them to begin their trek home.

xxx

"Don't tell my moms about Lily yet, alright?"

It was the first thing he said to him as they trudged down the sidewalk, and Killian had to fight back a sideways grin. All bloody teenagers were the same. A teasing comment rose on his tongue, but the look on his face made him swallow it.

"You needn't worry about me, lad," he assured him instead, and Henry only nodded, emerging them back into their silent trudge.

"You think… she might like me?"

The hesitant question took Killian fully off guard, something unusual tugging at his heart and dragging his feet to a halt. Henry noticed his stop a moment later, turning slowly to face him. His cheeks were bright again, his eyes shifting.

Killian took the boy in a moment; his body had grown swiftly in the short year he'd known him, now all hunched over limbs he still did not know what to do with. Despite being raised by a supposedly Evil Queen, the boy had honor written clearly into his system, something Killian had always seen and deeply respected in the lad. He suspected it was likely in his genes.

Henry was finally meeting his eyes, in the open way that only he could manage. He was listening fully—he cared about what Killian was going to say. He valued his opinion.

Again, his heart tugged.

"She certainly does not seem to dislike you," he spoke carefully, monitoring Henry's expression. Which remained entirely apt. He was waiting for more.

He was waiting for bloody advice. From him.

"I may seem docile, lad, but I am indeed a pirate. Are you quite sure I am the one you wish to speak to about this?" he was trying to be cautious, but this was unchartered territory for him.

Henry laughed at him. A slight snort, a sideways grin, and all of his muscles seemed to relax.

"Killian, I've seen you around my mom. Maybe you were a captain with a reign of terror but you seriously don't know the way a pirate usually treats a woman. I'm practically fourteen," he added in response to Killian's raised eyebrows, "I know things. And I know that you know stuff about girls."

Henry's words were strangely warming, and the damn tugging in his heart grew even more incessant. His eyes were trained on him, waiting patiently for him to break, and he countered the look with narrowed eyes of his own until finally…

He sighed.

"She seemed to be quite infatuated with you, lad," he finally conceded, starting out again and pausing slightly for Henry to follow. He glanced sideways at him to confirm he still wished to hear more. He was grinning now, but still watching him. "Perhaps you might… ask her to supper? If that is standard courting behavior in this realm?"

Henry, seemingly unfazed by Killian unfamiliarity with the realm, was now sporting a smile that might as well reach from ear to ear.

"You think she'd say yes?" he prompted, and Killian offered a slight nod.

"I do."

Now at the foot of the apartment building, they paused.

"Thanks, Killian. For helping me," Henry told him honestly, eyes still glistening with ill-contained excitement.

"Whatever you need, lad, I am always quite willing to assist," he answered, studying the boy. "I cannot claim I am infallible but I can certainly try."

"My moms are really great and all but it's just pretty cool to have someone to talk to, like a dad. You know?"

He smiled widely, innocently, before slipping into the building and leaving him dumbfounded and staring after him.

(When he finally followed, unable to stay in the cold much longer, Emma invited him in with a soft thank you, a dragging kiss and a hot cup of cocoa pressed into his palm and he knew, just knew, that he was home.)


End file.
